Controlled burning of vegetation 'poses a significant risk to life, property, and biodiversity'

Farmers need to be included in policymaking to move away from the practice, said the Climate Change Advisory Council

A gorse fire in Ballylickey, West Cork, on Tuesday. From March 1 to September 1, it is illegal to burn vegetation. Picture: Andy Gibson

Use of controlled burning to manage vegetation "poses a significant risk to life, property, and biodiversity", the country's Climate Change Advisory Council (CCAC) has warned.

Following a weekend of gorse fires that threatened large swathes of the likes of West Cork and Kerry, there has been palpable anger in rural communities about the unforeseen impact of so-called controlled burning.